Hear'Say

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Hear'Say
Hear'Say band.jpg
The original lineup of Hear'Say in 2001
Background information
OriginLondon, England
Genres Pop
Years active2000–2002
Labels
Past members

Hear'Say were a British pop group. They were created through the ITV reality TV show Popstars in February 2001, the first UK series of the international Popstars franchise. The group, who were signed to Polydor Records, originally consisted of Danny Foster, Myleene Klass, Kym Marsh, Suzanne Shaw, and Noel Sullivan.

Contents

Hear'Say achieved instant fame, breaking chart records with their debut single "Pure and Simple" and the album Popstars . However, their second album failed to match this success.

In January 2002, Marsh left Hear'Say due to conflicts with Klass and Sullivan. She was replaced by former Boom! member Johnny Shentall a month later. During a summer promotional tour, Hear'Say were constantly harassed by members of the public. [1] "Lovin' Is Easy", the group's only single to be released with Shentall, failed to make a commercial impact. Hear'Say announced their split in October 2002, twenty months after their formation, citing "abuse from the public" as the main reason for their demise. After the band's break-up, all members went on to achieve individual success elsewhere in the entertainment industry.

History

2000–2001: Formation, Popstars and Everybody

Over the course of six weeks in late 2000, thousands of hopeful singers attended open television auditions for ITV's Popstars talent show. The contestants were judged by Nigel Lythgoe, Paul Adam (director of A&R at Polydor Records, who had rights to the finished group), and Nicki Chapman, who had worked with the Spice Girls. The judges reduced the contestants to a group of ten, before visiting each of them at their homes to reveal whether or not they had been selected for the group. The five chosen singers – Danny Foster, Myleene Klass, Kym Marsh, Suzanne Shaw, and Noel Sullivan – formed Hear'Say. [2] The five unsuccessful finalists went on to form the group Liberty (later renamed Liberty X after a legal dispute). The programme documented Hear'Say recording and promoting their first single with the series ending on the night the single charted in the UK Singles Chart at number 1. Popstars became an instant success, taking in audiences of over 10 million viewers. [3]

In March 2001, Hear'Say released their first single, "Pure and Simple", a cover of a little-known album track by Girl Thing. The song went straight to number one on the UK Singles Chart in March 2001, selling just under 550,000 copies. [4] "Pure and Simple" was the fastest-selling debut single at the time, as well as the fastest-selling non-charity single – a record beaten a year later by Pop Idol winner Will Young. [4] The track spent two more weeks at number one. [5] With the release of their debut album Popstars , Hear'Say became the first act in UK chart history to simultaneously top the UK Singles Chart and UK Albums Chart with their debut releases. [5] Popstars sold 306,631 copies in its first week, breaking yet another record for fastest-selling debut album. [5] The album featured cover versions of "Monday Monday" by the Mamas & the Papas and "Bridge over Troubled Water" by Simon & Garfunkel, alongside original tracks purchased for the group.

Hear'Say released their second single, "The Way to Your Love", in June 2001. The song became their second consecutive number-one single. [6] [7] The group were invited to perform at the 80th birthday celebrations of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh.[ citation needed ] Hear'Say went on to present their own ITV show called Hear'Say It's Saturday, which featured performances, comedy sketches and celebrity guests. [8] This followed on from a mini-series named Meet the Popstars which was intended to allow the public to get to know the group and their music away from the talent show format. In August 2001, Hear'Say toured the United Kingdom. They initially announced five dates which quickly sold out, causing the band to schedule thirty more dates. [9] However, the new dates struggled to sell out as hundreds of tickets remained unsold. [9] [1] The group also released a live DVD.

Whilst on tour, the group began recording their second studio album, Everybody. In November 2001, just nine months after the release of their debut album, Hear'Say released Everybody. The album was preceded by a single of the same name. The single debuted at number four, while the album crept into the chart at number 24. [1] Everybody went on to sell just one fifth as many copies as Popstars. Despite the second album's lack of success, it did achieve Gold status by the BPI but over a decade after its release [10] and plans were made for an arena tour but these were later cancelled. [1]

2001–2002: Line-up changes, decline and break-up

Tabloids began reporting that Kym Marsh, who had gained attention due to her relationship with former EastEnders actor Jack Ryder, had left the band following feuds with bandmate Myleene Klass. [1] [11] A representative for Hear'Say denied the reports, stating: "Everybody who is involved with Hear'Say will be sitting down this week to discuss the future. Kym Marsh is still with the band." [11] However, in January 2002, Kym Marsh announced that she was leaving Hear'Say, later revealing she often fought with Klass and Noel Sullivan. [12] Auditions were held to find Marsh's replacement. [13]

The audition process was televised in segments of This Morning , an ITV daily morning show, mirroring the procedure during which the original members of Hear'Say were chosen. [14] Johnny Shentall, husband of Steps singer Lisa Scott-Lee, won the auditions, joining the group on 5 February 2002. [15] Controversy erupted when it was found out that Shentall had previously been a member of short-lived pop group Boom! and a back-up dancer for Hear'Say. [1] [15] In March 2002, Hear'Say cancelled their planned arena tour to allow Shentall time to "settle in" to the group. [1]

Hear'Say began recording their third album. During the summer of 2002, the group toured the UK radio roadshows circuit, where they were constantly booed and abused by members of the public, with a performance in Brighton being cut short due to the animosity concerned – evidence of the degree of public animosity that had built up. During the tour, the group's vehicle was threatened by an apparently armed man at a motorway service area on the M1 motorway in Leicestershire. [1] The man, later arrested, claimed to have been playing a prank on the group. In August 2002, Hear'Say released their only single with Shentall, entitled "Lovin' Is Easy". The track had a new sophisticated feel in an attempt to regenerate interest in the group's music. The single became Hear'Say's lowest charting single to date when it peaked at number six. [16] Media reports suggested that Polydor Records wanted the single to at least reach the UK Top 5. Following the disappointing sales of the single, it was thought that they would be dropped by the label, though no official word came from Polydor.

Hear'Say split up on 1 October 2002, citing "abuse from the public" as the main reason. [1] [17] The group admitted to being a fad that had passed. [17] Hear'Say's popularity had been eclipsed by that of Liberty X, a band composed of the five other finalists of Popstars. [1]

Discography

Albums

List of albums, with selected details, chart positions and certifications
TitleDetailsPeak chart positions Certifications
UK
[18] 		EUR
[19] 		IRE
[20] 		NZ
[21] 		SCO
[22]
Popstars
  • Released: 26 March 2001
  • Label: Polydor (#549821)
  • Formats: CS, CD
110411
Everybody
  • Released: 3 December 2001
  • Label: Polydor (#589541)
  • Formats: CS, CD
24———23
"—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory.

Singles

List of singles, with selected chart positions and certifications
TitleYearPeak chart positions Certifications Album
UK
[18] 		AUS
[27] 		EUR
[28] 		GER
[29] 		IRE
[20] 		NZ
[21] 		SCO
[30] 		SWI
[31]
"Pure and Simple"200117268331129Popstars
"The Way to Your Love"1—9—10441—
"Everybody"4—21—23—2—Everybody
"Lovin' Is Easy"20026—35—31—7—Non-album single
"—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory.

Filmography

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Myleene Klass</span> English musician and television presenter (born 1978)

Myleene Angela Klass is an English musician, singer, television presenter and model. She was a member of the pop group Hear'Say, and later released two solo classical crossover albums in 2003 and 2007. More recently, Klass has been a television and radio presenter. She has hosted television series including Popstar to Operastar (2010–2011) and BBQ Champ (2015) on ITV and The One Show (2007) on BBC One. She was a regular panellist on the ITV lunchtime chat show Loose Women in 2014 and again from 2024 onwards. In 2006, Klass was runner-up on the sixth series of I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!, and returned in 2023 for the "all-stars" series I'm a Celebrity... South Africa, which she won.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kym Marsh</span> English actress, singer-songwriter (born 1976)

Kimberley Gail Marsh is an English actress, television presenter and singer. In 2001, she won a place in the band Hear'Say as a result of appearing on the reality television series Popstars. Hear'Say enjoyed brief success, achieving two UK number one singles and a UK number one album, but Marsh left the band in 2002 to pursue a solo career. She released an album titled Standing Tall in 2003, which peaked at number nine in the UK and spawned two UK top ten singles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Suzanne Shaw</span> Musical artist

Suzanne Christine Crowshaw, known as Suzanne Shaw, is an English actress, singer and television personality, who rose to fame after winning the talent contest Popstars and subsequently being a member of the band Hear'Say.

Noel Sullivan is a Welsh singer and actor. He was a member of the British pop group Hear'Say. Like the other members of the group, he won his part through the talent show Popstars.

Danny Foster is an English pop/soul singer and television personality, who appeared in the inaugural series of the British television talent-show Popstars, going on to become a founder member of the pop group Hear'say.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thinking It Over (song)</span> 2001 single by Liberty X

"Thinking It Over" is the debut single of English-Irish pop group Liberty, before they became Liberty X. The garage song was produced by Pete Devereux and the Wideboys. It was co-written by band members Kelli Young and Tony Lundon. In the United Kingdom, the single was a hit, reaching number five, but was not as successful internationally, peaking at number 29 in Ireland and number 81 in Australia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pure and Simple (song)</span> 2001 single by HearSay

"Pure and Simple" is a song by British pop group Hear'Say, the winners of the UK version of Popstars. It was a cover of the original version recorded three years earlier by English-Dutch girl group Girl Thing, who were dropped from BMG before the song was given to Hear'Say. It was written by Pete Kirtley, Tim Hawes, and Betty Boo. The song was released on 12 March 2001 as the lead single from Hear'Say's debut studio album, Popstars (2001). The B-side is a cover of Simon & Garfunkel's "Bridge over Troubled Water".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Way to Your Love</span> 2001 single by HearSay

"The Way to Your Love" is the second single from British pop group Hear'Say, the winners of the UK version of Popstars. The song was written and produced by Norwegian production team StarGate and was released as the second and final single from Hear'Say's debut studio album, Popstars (2001), on 25 June 2001.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Everybody (Hear'Say song)</span> 2001 single by HearSay

"Everybody" is a song by British pop group Hear'Say, written by Martin Harrington, Ash Howes, Richard Stannard, Julian Gallagher, and Andy Caine. Produced by Harrington and Howes, the track was recorded for the group's second studio album of the same name (2001), released nine months after their debut album, Popstars. "Everybody" was issued as the album's lead single on 26 November 2001 and was the final single released by the band before member Kym Marsh quit. Upon its release, the song peaked at number four on the UK Singles Chart. The song's music video is set inside a space capsule and shows the five band members dancing on a stage.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">If There's Any Justice</span> 2004 single by Lemar

"If There's Any Justice" is the first single taken from British R&B singer Lemar's second album, Time to Grow (2004). Originally offered to Hear'Say, the song was rejected by the group after they decided it was "too mature" for them. It would eventually become a top-10 hit for Lemar, peaking at No. 3 on the UK Singles Chart, his fourth in a row to reach the top 10. Outside the UK, the song reached No. 1 in Hungary and entered the top 40 in France, Ireland, and New Zealand.

John George Shentall is a British pop singer. He was first a member of the pop group Boom! before joining another pop group, Hear'Say in 2002. He is married to Steps band member Lisa Scott-Lee.

Jiant was a British record production and songwriting team, headed by Tim Hawes and Pete Kirtley, working in the genres of pop, R&B and dance. Following their formation in 1999, the team collaborated with other composers and performers, including Alison Clarkson.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pete Kirtley</span> Musical artist

Peter Edward Kirtley is an English songwriter, record producer and music entrepreneur. He has produced over 200 records worldwide with sales exceeding 15 million and 100 million streams, including seven number-one hit singles worldwide, tracks on seven number-one albums, eight UK top-ten hits and thirty-five top-forty hits in Europe. He has written and/or produced for artists such as Tiësto, the Sugababes, Armin Van Buuren, Hear'Say, Newton Faulkner, Mutya Buena, Boyzone, Peter Andre, Lee Ryan, Heather Small, Kim Wilde and Alexander O'Neal. His production collaborations include Ryan Tedder, Guy Chambers and Stargate and metaverse music collaborations include Izzy Bizu and Nina Nesbitt.

<i>Popstars</i> (British TV series) discography

Popstars (UK) is a British reality television show produced for ITV that aired for two series. The first series, Popstars, aimed to find five singers to form a new pop group. During the second series, Popstars: The Rivals, two music groups were formed to compete for the Christmas number-one single in the United Kingdom.

<i>Popstars</i> (British TV series) 2001 British reality television series

Popstars is a reality music competition series that was broadcast on ITV in early 2001. It was the first British series of the international Popstars franchise and was billed as a documentary on the formation of a modern pop group. The programme began with audition rounds of aspiring singers performing covers of classic songs before a panel of judges. The best performers were selected to come to London for further rounds of auditions. Over the weeks, the judges eliminated various singers from the auditions until just a few singers were left in contention. In the final weeks, five contestants were chosen by the judges to form the new pop group Hear'Say. The programme then showed the group recording and promoting their first single, documenting their first ventures into the music industry.

Warren Stacey is a British singer from London who came into prominence on the UK television show Popstars, the reality programme that created the pop band Hear'Say. Despite not making it into the group, Stacey went on to be signed by Def Jam Recordings and released his debut single "My Girl, My Girl" in March 2002, which made number 26 on the UK Singles Chart.

<i>Popstars</i> (HearSay album) 2001 studio album by HearSay

Popstars is the debut album by British pop group Hear'Say, formed through the ITV television show Popstars. It was released in the United Kingdom on 26 March 2001. Hear'Say worked with a number of British and Scandinavian producers, including Stargate, and Quiz & Larossi. The album drew comparisons to similarly co-ed pop groups such as S Club 7 and Steps.

<i>Standing Tall</i> (Kym Marsh album) 2003 studio album by Kym Marsh

Standing Tall is the debut studio album by former Hear'Say singer Kym Marsh. It was released on 21 July 2003 in the United Kingdom by Island Records.

Boom! were an English pop group which consisted of members Johnny Shentall, Rachael Carr, Kevin Kehl, Shakti Edwards, Vicky Palmer, Nick Donaghy and Shaun Angel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">My Girl, My Girl</span> 2002 single by Warren Stacey

"My Girl, My Girl" is the debut single by British R&B singer Warren Stacey. It was released by Def Soul on 11 March 2002, and peaked at number 26 on the UK Singles Chart. Stacey was signed to Def Soul after appearing on Popstars, the reality programme that created the pop groups Hear'Say and Liberty X. Within weeks of his elimination from the show, Stacey was signed as a solo artist by Def Jam Recordings, who flew him to Los Angeles to write and record "My Girl My Girl" with production team Red Zone. The single was favourably compared to those of fellow British R&B singer, Craig David.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 "Hear'Say's rollercoaster career". BBC News. 1 October 2001. Retrieved 4 December 2012.
  2. ↑ Neil Wilkes (4 February 2001). "Popstars winners revealed". Digital Spy . Retrieved 4 December 2012.
  3. ↑ Neil Wilkes (2 February 2001). "Popstars: The Winners". Digital Spy . Retrieved 4 December 2012.
  4. 1 2 "Hear'Say hit number one". BBC News. 18 March 2001. Retrieved 4 December 2012.
  5. 1 2 3 "Hear'Say make chart history". BBC News. 1 April 2001. Retrieved 4 December 2012.
  6. ↑ "Hear'Say set for number one". BBC News. 26 June 2001. Retrieved 4 December 2012.
  7. ↑ "Hear'Say top charts again". BBC News. 1 July 2001. Retrieved 4 December 2012.
  8. ↑ "Hear'Say It's Saturday". TV.com . Retrieved 4 December 2012.
  9. 1 2 "Hear'Say tour fails to sell out". BBC News. 6 September 2001. Retrieved 4 December 2012.
  10. ↑ "Certified Awards". Archived from the original on 24 January 2013. Retrieved 5 August 2014. – Type 'Hearsay' in the search box, to find the certification.
  11. 1 2 "Hear'Say in talks over Kym". BBC News. 14 January 2002. Retrieved 4 December 2012.
  12. ↑ "Kym: Hear'Say was one big row". London Evening Standard . 28 January 2002. Archived from the original on 21 April 2013. Retrieved 4 December 2012.
  13. ↑ "Hear'Say search for replacement". The Daily Telegraph . 3 February 2002. Retrieved 4 December 2012.
  14. ↑ "Hear'Say auditions reject thousands". BBC News. 3 February 2002. Retrieved 4 December 2012.
  15. 1 2 Jeffery (5 February 2002). "Hear'Say announce new fifth member". The Guardian . Retrieved 4 December 2012.
  16. ↑ "Sugababes back on top". Sky News. 18 August 2002. Archived from the original on 4 October 2013. Retrieved 4 December 2012.
  17. 1 2 "Abused pop band Hear'Say split up". CNN. 1 October 2002. Retrieved 4 December 2012.
  18. 1 2 UK chart peaks:
  19. ↑ European studio albums chart peaks:
  20. 1 2 "Irish chart peaks". irish-charts. com (Hung Medien). Retrieved 22 November 2020.
  21. 1 2 "New Zealand chart peaks". charts.nz (Hung Medien). Retrieved 22 November 2020.
  22. ↑ Scottish studio albums chart peaks:
  23. 1 2 "UK certified Awards Search". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved on 22 November 2020. Note: User needs to enter Hear'say in the "Search BPI Awards" field and press Enter
  24. ↑ "European IFPI Certification - Popstars" (PDF). IFPI Europe . Retrieved 22 November 2020.
  25. ↑ "New Zealand Certification - Popstars". RMNZ . Retrieved 22 November 2020.
  26. 1 2 "UK certified Awards Search". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved on 22 November 2020. Note: User needs to enter Hearsay in the "Search BPI Awards" field and press Enter
  27. ↑ Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010. Mt. Martha, VIC, Australia: Moonlight Publishing.
  28. ↑ European singles chart peaks:
  29. ↑ German singles chart peaks:
  30. ↑ Scottish singles chart peaks:
  31. ↑ "Swiss chart peaks". swisscharts.com. Retrieved 23 November 2020.
  32. ↑ "New Zealand Certification - Pure and Simple". RMNZ . Retrieved 23 November 2020.
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